In 2010, when Disney's race series took the runDisney name, Jeff Galloway became its official training consultant. Galloway, who died in 2026, ran the 10,000 meters at the 1972 Olympics, and by 2010 he had finished all 17 Walt Disney World Marathons. He wrote the training programs on runDisney's site, each a downloadable PDF. All 11 are on this page: 5 for beginners, from the 5K to the marathon, and 6 for experienced runners, including challenge plans that stack races on back-to-back mornings.
Each plan is graded on the same 31 measures we use for every plan, with the research behind each measure linked. The ladder is strict. A C is a decent plan with gaps worth knowing about, and a D is either bare bones or has issues that you might want to avoid. Seven earn a C and 4 a D. Open any plan to see what it does well, where it falls short, and who it suits.
- Plans reviewed
- 11
- Goals
- 5K, 10K, 10 Mile, Half Marathon, Marathon
- Length
- 11–29 weeks
- Run days
- 3–5 a week
- Peak mileage
- 9–54 miles a week
5K plans
10K plans
10 Mile plans
Half Marathon plans
Galloway's run-walk-run, the method that gets first-timers to 13.1.
BeginnerFreeRun-walk-run your way through a back-to-back race weekend.
AdvancedFreeGalloway's run-walk method, with long runs past race distance.
AdvancedFreeMarathon plans
Walk breaks built into every run, all the way to 26.2.
BeginnerRequires purchaseJeff Galloway's run-walk-run method, so anyone willing to train can finish 26.2.
AdvancedRequires purchaseBuild up to 26 miles, then race four days in a row.
AdvancedRequires purchaseWalk the half on Saturday so you can run the marathon on Sunday.
AdvancedRequires purchaseRun-walk intervals all the way to 26.2, the Galloway way.
AdvancedFreeTraining with runDisney
Every plan uses Galloway's Run Walk Run: a walk break from the first minute of every run, on a ratio set by your pace, and you can always walk more than the plan lists. The beginner plans are written for people with less than 6 months of running, for comeback runners, and for anyone happy to finish without a time goal. Their pace target is set by the course time limit, so the aim is plain: stay ahead of the course closing time and enjoy the day.
The week is simple. Most plans ask for 3 days: 2 short weekday sessions and a longer weekend run that grows every week or two. A Magic Mile (a timed mile) every couple of weeks sets your pace and your ratio. The experienced plans make each weekday session 45 minutes with a job of its own, and add some faster running inside the longer weekend runs.
The challenge plans are where Galloway's years at Disney show most. Goofy's Race and a Half, the Dopey Challenge and the 10K and Half Marathon Challenge skip speedwork and rehearse race weekends instead. Every 2 to 3 weeks, a short or walked day comes before a long one, so your legs learn to go the distance the day after they've already been out.
The grades split by distance. Everything from the 5K to the half marathon earns a C, and the 10K and Half Marathon Challenge is the strongest in the set. Four of the 5 marathon-distance plans earn a D. All 5 take the long run to 26 miles or more, slow and with walk breaks, so you start the race knowing you've covered the distance. Coaches split on whether a marathon build needs runs that long, and Galloway kept his long runs slow by design. But these plans get there in big swings: the 10-week plan goes from a Sunday of 3 to 5 miles straight to 21, then 24, then 27. Sharp jumps in weekly running raise the risk of injury, and across all 11 plans, strength work is left off the schedule.
If your race is a Disney 5K, 10K, 10-miler or half, the beginner plans are gentle and clearly written, and built for exactly that day. For a marathon or a challenge weekend, read the reviews closely. If you've been hurt recently, talk to your doctor or physical therapist before you start.
Get more out of your running with Buena Vida
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In research studies, runners on plans fit to them improved as much as or more than runners on fixed plans, and fewer of them stalled.
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